Article written by Laure Deflandre, psychologist

Baby crying can have many causes:

Hunger or thirst. Breastfeeding or bottle feeding calms a baby. If he cries right after a meal, it may be that he is still hungry or needs to breastfeed.

Digestive problems. Regurgitation problems, constipation, diarrhea, or even food allergy problems can be the cause of crying in the baby.

Colic. Colic is abdominal pain due to digestive problems. If the baby clenches his fists hard, pulls his knees up to his tummy, and arched his back, he may have colic. They usually stop after the age of three months and do not affect the development of the child.

The need for sleep. To ensure a good sleep of a baby, it is necessary to lay it down on its back in its bed, wearing a sleeping bag in its size, in a room between 18 and 20 °.

Pain somewhere: A baby can get teething, fever, ear infections, headache. Crying, he expresses his pain.

The need to be changed. A dirty or wet diaper can irritate a baby’s bottom.

The baby is too hot or too cold. Be careful not to over cover a baby who might be too hot. He must be dressed according to the ambient temperature and the weather.

Boredom or the need to move. A baby needs to be surrounded and to be stimulated by games adapted to his age, such as a rattle for example.

The desire for a hug or to be carried. Some babies have a great need to be hugged often.

The wish to change position. While breastfeeding, finding the ideal position for mom and baby allows effective sucking.

The feeling that the mother is anxious or depressed. A baby is very sensitive to his family environment. If the mom is tense and stressed, the baby will be able to feel it. Numerous psychological studies have shown a correlation between mom’s stress level and infant crying1.

Simple actions are useful to calm a baby in full crying attack, here are some suggestions:

Check if he’s hungry or needs a diaper change.

Control the temperature of the room where the child is, ideally between 18 and 20 ° C.

Gently rock the baby in your arms or in the cradle.

Wrap the baby in sheets and hug him. The newborn loves to feel protected and safe in the warmth as when he was in his mother’s womb.

Lay the baby down in a reassuring and peaceful place so that he can fall asleep peacefully.

Calm baby by speaking to him in a soothing voice.

Sing a lullaby to the baby or have him listen to a little soft music. Hearing repetitive sounds calms a baby because it reminds him of his mother’s regular heartbeat when it was still in her womb. This is also the reason why he likes to be tight against her.

Carry baby using a shoulder strap. Being stuck up against one of your parents can reassure a baby.

Massage the baby. It may be useful to ask a pediatric nurse for advice on what to do to relax the child. Massage can be really effective during colic attacks.

Change the baby’s position. Finding the right position is one of the key factors for successful breastfeeding.

Distract the baby with a toy or rattle.

Need sucking. The sucking activity providing a feeling of well-being to the baby, the fact of sucking the breast, a clean finger or a pacifier, is sometimes enough to calm it.

Give your baby a bath. It is a moment of relaxation and leisure for the baby

Homeopathy. Homeopathy can be recommended to parents to relieve the pain of their baby suffering from colic.

During the day. Go for a walk outside with your baby in a stroller for a change of environment. Also, sometimes taking her for a drive can calm a crying baby.

It is normal for a baby to cry, it does not affect his health in any way. Parents should not feel guilty and should accept it. Time will allow them to get to know their child and find the right technique to help them calm down.

However, when the crying lasts too long or is too recurrent, it may be a sign that the baby is upset about something. In this case, it will be important to observe the behavior of the baby when he begins to cry in order to understand the trigger.

A baby who cries constantly can really create stress and worry around him. His parents should not be overwhelmed and upset. These tears can be an expression of unease. It could be a disorder without gravity, but sometimes it can hide a more important health problem.

In general, a parent should not hesitate to consult a doctor or pediatrician if the crying of his baby is not as usual, if his concern persists and finally, if the baby remains inconsolable despite the application of the advice listed below. -above.

A doctor can find the cause of the baby’s repetitive crying and help parents calm down and regain the pleasure of caring for their child. 

Consultation for medical reasons:

• Fever
• Ear pain
• Diarrhea, constipation
• Vomiting

Consultation for psychological reasons:

The therapeutic review on “infant crying”1 gives us some therapeutic tools to detect the psychological reasons that could lead to the consultation of a specialist:

• The frequency of crying
• Sleep disorders
• Changing eating behavior
• The psychoaffective development of infants according to the type of parent / baby relationship
• Parents’ quality of life and emotional disturbances
• The risk of reactive abuse (for example, the ” shaken baby syndrome “. Irritated by their baby’s excessive crying, some parents shake their child to silence him. These actions can lead to irremediable neurological consequences in the infant, or even death.)

Possible treatments:

Depending on the situation, parents will be offered either behavioral, dietary, drug or even psychological care.

These different types of care can help parents and baby. The doctor who takes care of the child’s health can direct the parents to consult a child psychiatrist or a psychologist to help them resolve certain family situations in order to prevent the situation from becoming encysted and the family atmosphere sinking. ‘worsen.